2023 Golden Herald Awards honor students for service to their schools and community
The 46th Annual Golden Herald Awards honored students for inspiring, compassionate, thoughtful service to their schools and community.
Although 16 students received Golden Herald awards Thursday night at State College of Florida, presenters emphasized that every student nominated was outstanding in their own right.
“It is important to make note that these students who were nominated tonight all excel academically. But it is more important to note that they all have a proven record of giving of themselves to their respective school and community,” said Tom McDougal, chief executive officer for Manatee Memorial Hospital.
Each Golden Herald winner received a commemorative medal, an award plaque and a $1,800 cash prize.
“We are excited with the results of tonight’s awards. These students are exceptional. Not only the students that will be named Golden Herald Award winners but by the depth of quality and caring among all the students who are participating in the 46th year of the Golden Herald Awards,” McDougal said.
Later, McDougal, impressed by a student’s overwhelming list of accomplishments, quipped: “This person has apparently not slept in the past three years.”
The same could be said of all of the nominees.
“Everyone is inspiring tonight,” said one of the presenters, Jackie Barron of the Mosaic Company.
Lauren Walck, executive editor of the Bradenton Herald, said every Golden Herald Award nominee exemplifies the unselfish use of his or her talents and the ability to help others.
“Each is an individual with a notable record of achievement and service to school and community. In that sense, every Golden Herald Awards nominee is a winner,” Walck said.
Each participating school was invited to nominate up to two seniors in each of the 16 categories for a total of 32 nominees possible per school, master of ceremonies Vernon DeSear said.
DeSear called Thursday night’s programs uplifting and encouraging.
A full list of Golden Herald Award recipients is included below:
Art
Winner: Hanna Kaffka, Manatee High School
Honorable mention: Bella Rosa of St. Stephen’s Episcopal School
Runners up: Yanira Cora, Bayshore High School, Remy Lewis, Southeast High School, Sean Mayfair-Drennen, Braden River High School, William Perry, Palmetto High School, Ellie Raistrick, Parrish Community School and Dialexi Torres, Southeast High School
Athletics
Winner: Jenny Martinez, Palmetto High School
Honorable mention: Benny Hedgepeth, Braden River High School
Runners-up: Aidan Argueta, Southeast High School, Danielle Kirchberg, Lakewood Ranch High School, Layla Perez, Bayshore High School, Elizabeth Ramsey, Lakewood Ranch High School, Grant Richardson, Manatee High School, Shaina Saint Louis, Southeast High School and Julia Vorbeck, Manatee High School
Business
Winner: Kaliyah Owens, Southeast High School
Honorable mention: Brooke Strickland, Parrish Community High School
Runner-up: Sheyanne Mays, Southeast High School
Bob Bartz Memorial Award in Citizenship
Winner: Tierney Thornhill, Lakewood Ranch High School
Honorable mention: Ella Emmrich, Manatee High School
Runners-up: James Balzer, Manatee High School, Chase Bowen, Parrish Community High School, Ava Heflin, Parrish Community High School, Lilly Lynch, Lakewood Ranch High School, Ella Pardue, Bradenton Christian High School, Ansh Patel, Southeast High School, Mylasia Roper, Bayshore High School, Andrew Scott, Southeast High School, Caitlyn Traxler, Manatee School of the Arts and Giovan Zapata, Palmetto High School
Computer & Technology
Winner: Ricardo Campbell, Bradenton Christian High School
Honorable mention: Paulo Herrera, Southeast High School
Runners-up: Nicolas Curci, Braden River High School, Samy Katibi, Southeast High School, Mason Kaufman, Braden River High School, Carson Prewitt, Bradenton Christian High School and Miguel Riano Guevara, Bayshore High School
Drama
Winner: Mackenzie Tice, Bradenton Christian High School
English and Literature
Winner: Alexia Fuentes, Southeast High School
Honorable mention: Madeline Boyd, Palmetto High School
Runner-up: Melissa Castro-Arellano, Southeast High
Foreign Languages
Winner: Kehyla Desdin, Bradenton Christian High School
Honorable mention: Yuxuan Guo, Southeast High School
Runners-up: Karime Jimenez, Palmetto High School and Emilio Zepeda-Dolore, Southeast High School
General Scholarship
Winner: Chandler Poppell, Palmetto High School
Honorable mention: Cassandra Leal, Manatee High School
Runners-up: Elina Bayard, St. Stephens Episcopal School, Kevin Chafloque, Southeast High School, Naika Durmorne, Lakewood Ranch High School, Kaitlyn Hoyer, Parrish Community High School, Mark Krywko, Southeast High School, Isabella Pasquale, Braden River High School, Mahima Patel, Braden River High School and Katelyn Powe, Parrish Community High School
Journalism
Winner: Sophia Creneti, St. Stephen’s Episcopal School
Honorable mention: Allison Raudales Godoy, Southeast High School
Runners up: Jacob Blankenhorn, Southeast High School, Abby Eldredge, Parrish Community High School, Kaylani Pusateri, Parrish Community High School, Katie Singh, Bayshore High School and Natasha Vibhakar Manatee High School
Mathematics
Winner: Dylan Jackson, Braden River High School
Honorable mention: Erick Enriquez-Vega, Southeast High School
Runners-up: Makayla Brooks, Palmetto High School and Nicolette Miceli, SCF Collegiate High School
Music
Winner: Paris Guerrero, Southeast High School
Honorable mention: Katie Evans, Manatee High School
Runners-up: James Carlson, Parrish Community High School, Sebastian Collado, Braden River High School, Anthony Gendreau, Palmetto High School, Aiden Letourneau, Southeast High School, Vivian Phung, St. Stephen’s Episcopal School, Joshua Seagreaves, Bradenton Christian High School and Olivia Thiers, Parrish Community High School
Science
Winner: Kate Tuchman, Lakewood Ranch High School
Honorable mention: Skylar Rattana, Southeast High School
Runners-up: Cassidy Blankinship, Braden River High School, Wally Cheso, Parrish Community High School and Dalila Sanchez, SCF Collegiate High School
Social Science
Winner: Ryan Gustafson, Braden River High School
Honorable mention: Paige Justice, Southeast High School
Runner-up: Alan Morfin, Southeast High School
Speech
Winner: Noah Johnson, Manatee High School
Honorable mention: Marissa Souders, Parrish Community High School
Runner-up: Puja Patel, Southeast High School
Vocational
Winner: Mary Grace Graham, SCF Collegiate School
Honorable mention: Cameron Murphy, Manatee High School
Runners-up: Hanna Britten-Campbell, Parrish Community High School, Lola Duytschaver, Manatee High School, Dev Tripathi, Southeast High School, James Williams, Southeast High School and Toni Ziemer, Parrish Community High School
Brad Borsheim Scholarship
The names of three students were drawn at the end of the program for a special scholarship funded by donations from the family of Brad Borsheim, a former Bradenton Herald employee and longtime friend of the Golden Heralds.
Receiving $1,000 scholarships were Makayla Brooks of Palmetto High School and James Williams of Southeast High School. Receiving a $500 scholarship was Miguel Riano Guevara of Bayshore High School.
During the history of the awards, over 5,600 Manatee County high school seniors have been honored.
